Katsuki flinches as Hitoshi chokes out a grunt of agony, another long shard of glass being pulled out from his pale skin---his shoulder this time, he notes. It makes a disgusting noise as it dislodges and the man who's taken charge of Hitoshi's wounds let's it drop into the tin bowl below them with a grimace. Stain, he said his name was.

He's an odd looking fellow, unkempt dark hair petaled around his head and bulging eyes glaring into Hitoshi's blood-soaked skin. He's been in some sort of accident, a scar covering most of his face and reducing his nose to damn near just a pair of nostrils on his face.

Shady as fuck, but it seems like he knows what he's doing.

"You're lucky they didn't hit any vital organs or arteries or you'd be dead, Hitoshi." His gruff voice says, laced with a discernable amount of annoyance as he finishes sewing up another one of Hitoshi's wounds. The mercenary hums around the cigarette poised between his lips.

"You hear that, Kitty? I made Lady Luck my bit---fucking ow!" He yells when Stain tugs the end of the thick thread just a tad bit harder than he should, glaring up at the pale man.

"I'm serious, you stupid fuck. Take some responsibility for once and quit using your body as a shield. Didn't they teach you how to take cover at that stupid fucking academy? Or are you trying to die and leave me with all of your unfinished business?"

"On any other given day, I'd say yes but I never leave a job unfinished. Especially not the ones with live cargo."

"Fuck you." Katsuki counters monotonously and Hitoshi just shrugs.

"You're making excuses. Dragging the fucking stripper along with you wasn't apart of the job. You're not only jeopardizing their life, but you're drawing it out and complicating it. You're going to get everyone in the league killed."

"I thought you didn't care about the league."

Stain scoffs.

"I don't. Those gross, grimy bastards are the embodiment of everything I hate about society. Even more than I hate cops. Personally, the world would be better if they all just drop dead. But now you've got kids involved."

"You say that like you've never killed children."

Christ, what the fuck kind of monster murders kids?!

Stain narrows his eyes at Hitoshi before they shut and he heaves a sigh that's meant to calm him.

"What? Was I supposed to let the little fuck stab me to death? The kids you brought are innocent and don't even know what the fuck is happening to them, not trained martyrs. And I get that the other one is necessary but why bring this kid?" Stain inquires again, jabbing a thumb in Katsuki's direction. The blonde would like to tell him to fuck off and mind his own, but unfortunately he's not allowed to speak and for the first time in like---ever? He's inclined to listen. He's got no intention of dying tonight.

Hitoshi takes a long drag that finishes off his cigarette.

"They broke protocol and the kid was in danger. They were gonna kill him."

"So?"

"So...fuck, so I saved him."

Stain gives him a long, impassive gaze.

"You're an idiot." He says simply, standing as he puts away all of his medical paraphernalia with a shake of his head. Hitoshi squints at him with a scrutinizing gaze, almost as if he's accidentally let put some horrible secret and wonders if he should let the man continue living. He watches until Stain is no longer in sight, door shutting behind him with a rude thud on the way out.

"Jeez, the hell is his problem?"

"What, you mean all broody and vengeful? He's just like that." Hitoshi says, as if it's any answer at all as he goes to check his wounds in the mirror. Now that all of that blood had been washed away by a steaming shower, he could see just how bad his injuries were.

They fucked him up pretty bad, split lip aside.

He turns back to Katsuki, eyes heavy with exhaustion.

"You've eaten. Are you still hungry at all?"

Katsuki shakes his head and Hitoshi insists.

"Are you sure? I need you to have as much strength as you can get. You skip meals a lot during the day. Not at all healthy or acceptable."

"Who the fuck are you to lecture me on health, Mr. Pack-a-Day? I said I'm fine." Katsuki urges, flopping down onto the sinfully comfortable bed to glare at the ceiling. He can hear Hitoshi's footsteps meandering about the room, moving things about and, presumably, locking the door. Something heavy clanks against the nightstand and then the lamp goes off before Katsuki feels the bed dip next to him. His entire body stiffens, not daring to look over at the spot next to him.

"What are you doing?"

"Going to bed, Katsuki." Hitoshi responds, exasperated. "Please don't tell me you're gonna bitch about sharing the bed. I almost got stabbed in my fucking kidneys for you; least you could do is allow me to sleep comfortably. I don't understand how kissing you is okay but sleeping in the same bed isn't." He says, voice groggy as if he's already been asleep for eight hours. Katsuki's cheeks bloom and he realizes that asking Hitoshi to sleep on the floor would not only be completely childish and rude, but incredibly inconsiderate considering all that Hitoshi has done for him.

"I-I'm not."

"Good."

The silence stretches on and Katsuki closes his eyes, hoping that maybe if he kept them closed for long enough he'd just fall asleep but...

Well, shit. Every time he closes his eyes, he just sees Awase's brains splattered across the tile of the club's floor. It's not something he could forget about so easily, and he knows very well that it will probably haunt his subconscious for the rest of his life.

However long that may be.

He doesn't know what's going to happen to him after this. Doesn't know that he's going to survive or if those bastards will actually find and kill him...or whatever it is they plan to do to him.

And what if he does somehow survive? What happens then? It's not as if they'll just go back to letting him live a normal life. He can't just go back to his apartment, go back to school...

Go back to Somnambul.

He takes a deep breath and exhales, eyes opening to meet complete darkness. His limbs feel heavy and his heart rate picks up---fuck, he's gonna give himself a panic attack.

A hand at his waist startles him.

"Deep breaths in and out. 1...2...3 in. 3...2...1 out. C'mon, you can do it." Hitoshi's voice is soothing compared to what it was just moments ago, talking him down as his thumb rubs against Katsuki's side.

"You're doin' good, babe. Don't worry about anything tonight, alright? I know shits hitting the fan pretty hard right now but I've got you. And if you can't trust anyone else in this, you can trust me."

Katsuki's hands curl and clench against the sheets and he nods, unsure if Hitoshi can even see him as he swallows the lump in his throat.

"Good boy. What do you need me to do? I can see if Stain has something to help you sleep but---"

"God, please, no. He's a fucking psychopath." Katsuki breathes out and Hitoshi laughs airily beside him. It's enough to calm him further---enough to draw another deep breath from him. "Yeah, he is. But he's medically trained so...I dunno. I just...don't really know how else to help you sleep. I mean, usually if I can't sleep I just rub one or two out and---"

"Hitoshi."

"What? It's a suggestion. And it's been scientifically proven to work. I'll even leave the room if you need me to."

"I'm not gonna jerk off with you in the next room just for you to come get back into the bed I jerked off in."

"I don't mind helpin'---"

"Hitoshi."

"Alright, alright, fine."

A beat passes and Katsuki turns on his side, thankful that Hitoshi can't see how red in the face he is.

"This---this is gonna sound weird but...would you...can you...put your arms around me? It's just---Shouto does it for me when I have nightmares and..." He asks, hoping he doesn't sound as ridiculously desperate as he feels. 

"...want me to hold you? Yeah, alright."

He sounds so breathless, like he's been running a marathon but his arms do wrap around Katsuki and pull him closer. They shift around a bit to find a comfortable position, which ends with Katsuki laying on top of him with his head on his chest. One of Hitoshi's arms wrap around his back and the other tight around his waist.

His heart runs a mile a minute as Katsuki puts his ear against his chest.

"Jesus, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm---I'm just not used to being affectionate with people."

"If you're uncomfortable you can let go, dipshit."

"Nah, this is nice. Just holding you, I mean. Feels good."

A hand shifts to grope Katsuki's backside playfully and the blonde rolls his eyes.

"Real good." Hitoshi reiterates. Katsuki can feel him smile against his hair.

"You're an idiot."

"Aw, c'mon. That didn't make you wanna smile? Even just a little? Man, I won't ever get over how soft your ass is for it to be so perfect and bouncy."

"You fantasize about my ass a lot?"

"I fantasize about you a lot."

As soon as Hitoshi says it, he tenses---like it was something he hadn't meant to say out loud.

"I mean...yeah. it's kind of hard not to when you look so fuckin' good, you know." He tries to explain himself and Katsuki can audibly hear him swallow.

Hitoshi sighs.

"God, I'm fuckin' soft. Never in my entire life have a ever let a job drag me so deep into shit. And I've done jobs for some real grade A babes, you know. I've put my dick in literal fucking movie stars and never once have I ever been fucking inclined to wanna be with them so what the fuck is wrong with me now? I'm breaking so many fuckin' rules for you right now---"

"Then just leave me behind, Hitoshi."

"Absolutely fuckin' not. I'm just venting, alright? Can I do that?"

Katsuki silences himself and Hitoshi's embrace tightens around him as he sighs, afraid that Katsuki might turn or roll away from him.

"I don't have a plan. I mean, yeah, sure, follow through with the job but then what? I just hand you over to Midoriya and pretend none of this ever happened? Like I never met you? Try to get over you? Guess I could but that's gonna fuckin' suck." He continues.

"...so when I asked you what your end game was. You didn't know for sure, did you?" Katsuki asks, curious. Hitoshi grunts.

"I did. I mean, at first, I was just fuckin' around. Messin' with you because it was funny to see your reactions but somewhere down the line it just felt right and I can't even tell when shit started getting that way. One day I realized I fuckin' wanted you and I knew I was in deep shit. Started to take Midoriya's advice and fuck off but somethin' told me to come to the club that night and...well, shit, here we are."

Katsuki isn't sure of what to do with that information. With the knowledge that Hitoshi really didn't have any ulterior motives. That him gaining any sort of feelings for Katsuki was completely unintentional and that he'd probably take it all back if he could. Katsuki can't say for sure that he doesn't feel the same urge to be with Hitoshi. He's never dwelled on any feelings he's had. Just knew that Hitoshi made him feel good and that he enjoyed the time they spent together. He's actually relieved to know that not all of it was a lie. That the fun they had was real. The conversation they shared was real. The kisses...they were real.

Katsuki squeezes Hitoshi tighter.

"I'm sorry I fucked things up for you." He says, barely a whisper. Hitoshi bristles at that. "You didn't fuck up anything for me, Kit. All of these feelings are my own doing. If anything, Midoriya and I should be apologizing for ruining your life. I know it must suck to just be uprooted like that. If you hate me, I'm cool with that. It may even be better that way."

"Shut up, I don't want to hate you."

"..."

"I just...need to sort this shit out. Which I can...once I fully process what the fuck is happening to me. But I don't want you to---fuck, I don't want you to regret me, okay? Cause...you know. Some of that shit isn't all that one-sided." He admits.

Hitoshi's breath catches in his throat but he doesn't grace Katsuki with another response. They just lay there, Katsuki drawing patterns into Hitoshi's bare chest with his fingertip as he tries to will his blushing cheeks away.

"Hey. Kitten."

"...yeah?"

"Can I...would it be okay if I kissed you?"

Hot. His skin is on fire, head raising as he props himself up to look at Hitoshi. He can't see him in the dark of the room but he knows he's there, staring at him.

Not a moment later the bedside lamp flickers on and Hitoshi is a lot closer than Katsuki had gauged, breath ghosting against his lips as he huffs out a gasp.

A scarred hand rests against Katsuki's cheek as he leans forward to press there lips together.

It's short and sweet, Hitoshi pulling away just enough for him to look Katsuki in the eyes. The blonde boy feels lightheaded, skin flushed as Hitoshi catches his bottom lip between his teeth.

"Your breath smells like cigarettes." Is all he can think to say.

But it doesn't stop him from kissing Hitoshi again.